


Putting Out Fire (With Gasoline)

by FallinApart



Series: Putting Out Fire [1]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Angst, Badass Reader, Bill & reader have a protective sibling bond, Canon-Typical Behavior, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, F/M, Friends to Lovers, HAROLD THEY'RE LESBIANS, Minor Twelfth Doctor/Missy, Missy x f!Reader, Mondas cybermen, Mutual Pining, Other, Reader Insert, Secret Relationship, Silver!Simm, Silver!Simm x f!Reader, Slow Burn, The Doctor Falls, Time Vault Missy, World Enough And Time, but can be read as gender neutral mostly, mondas cybership, the time vault, written as female reader
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-11-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:41:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24647359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallinApart/pseuds/FallinApart
Summary: While on a probation-adventure supervised by the Doctor and led by Missy, Bill and the Reader find themselves stranded in the bowels of a massive spaceship on the edge of a black hole. Trapped and without the Doctor or Missy in sight, the odds look grim, but the reader isn't ready to give up without trying to save themselves. Little do they know there’s another danger lurking in the shadows, closer than the Cybermen, and far more devious.
Relationships: Bill Potts & Reader, Missy & Reader, Missy (Doctor Who)/Reader, The Master (Doctor Who)/Missy (Doctor Who)/Reader, The Master (Doctor Who)/Reader, The Master (Simm)/Reader
Series: Putting Out Fire [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1782022
Comments: 14
Kudos: 71





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter is set throughout in season 10, but most of the fic will be set in episodes 10x 11 and in 10x12.  
> ((Title inspired by the David Bowie Song- Cat People))

From the first wry and sweetly uttered words proclaiming false innocence when you first tumbled upon her hidden prison, Missy, without a doubt become one of the most interesting people you had ever met.

With the exception of the Doctor, that was. But even then, you couldn’t quite explain the silent, powerful magnetism that drew you to her in a way that had you returning to visit her regularly enough that it had become something of a routine.

* * *

Even more surprisingly, she seemed to tolerate your presence in a manner that had you both wary and secretly giddy.

 _Nice_ certainly wasn’t the right word for how she treated you, but she certainly _played nice_ by comparison when you saw the ways she spoke with others and contrasted it to the cautiously curious conversations the two of you had.

Missy was an enigma.

A funny, _terrifying_ , and beautiful enigma wrapped into the form of Mary Poppin’s evil alternate ego.

But _damn_ was she fun.

And she might have noticed the ways your lips quirked upward into a smile at her jokes and passive jabs at the Doctor, or the way your gazes met when your eyes glimmered with curiosity at the rare story she’d share of her past.

_“My whole life doesn’t revolve around you, Doctor.”_

You remember her chiming in annoyance at the Doctor.

And the more you listened, the more convinced you were that what she said was true.

Not that you’d trust her not to lie.

No, you figured that even if the stories _were_ all lies, she was at the very least the kind of storyteller that had you mindlessly grinning at her theatrical retellings, resting your head on your hands as you leaned forward in your seat.

You couldn’t be sure that she _liked_ you, given her open and frequently voiced distaste for humanity.

But at the very least, she didn’t seem want to kill you.

Regardless, she seemed to enjoy having an audience, and company not constantly berating her.

It came as a surprise when she even humored you about stories related to her past, you listened with genuine curiosity, watching as she’d place her hands on her hips and pace about her glass stage as if delivering a dramatic monologue to her audience of one.

The first time she opted to share, you approached it in a more back-and-forth, conversational manner, but the icy glare she shot you had your question dying in your throat. Moments like that reminded you of _exactly_ who she was and _what_ she was capable of.

You were quick to not repeat the mistake in front of the same woman who spoke of human deaths like swatting flies. She seemed pleased about that, and often shifted to this monologue-esque style of interaction when telling a story. Not that you minded, she had you engaged at every lilt of her Scottish intonations and occasional break for dramatic pause.

Somewhere along the line, her voice became oddly soothing to you. Despite the frequent awful things she said and flippantly colorful descriptions of even seemingly ordinary things.

You your embarrassment, you even caught yourself watching with a tilted head and soft dopey smile on your face. Her amused short laugh and the feeling of her gaze suddenly on you had your face flushing red with embarrassment under her scrutinization.

“ _Enjoying yourself, are you_? Or did your little human brain scurry off to a daydream in the middle of _my story_?” Missy teased, her hands on her hips with a click of her tongue.

You were quick to shake your head, the thought of even being anywhere but _present_ in her company sounding ridiculous in your head. You weren’t sure if you had felt that way around anyone before, to your silent dismay, but pushing those thoughts to the back of your head.

“Just listening,” you shot back dismissively, “You’re a good storyteller.”

You admitted honestly, shrugging to downplay the sentiment, but your eyes flashing to hers with a somewhat guilty smile.

Her eyes scanned over you for a moment in that way that made you feel both terrifyingly exposed and oddly thrilled.

“ _Hm_. Well, don’t get too _dreamy-eyed_ on me, pet.” She said, her body language easing as she seemed to accept your explanation. You kept your expression unchanged at her added endearment.

“Makes me feel like you’re _not listening_ ,” she added with an exaggeratedly sad expression, miming an invisible tear trailing down her cheek. Then she half-swung around, her skirts fanning with a flourish before taking a seat at the piano bench.

“ _Usually_ when people are properly listening to me, there’s a bit more _fear_ than dopey grins,” her tone was sickly sweet as she paused to idly examine her nails, “Perhaps I’ve been too soft. I’ll have to let you in on some more _grizzly details_ of my….intergalactic _exploits_.” She added in a thoughtful voice and a dramatic sigh.

You fought the urge to roll your eyes at the act, but shook your head instead, looking to her with a challenging look, but otherwise not moving from your position.

“Or maybe it’s just not _you_. I don’t mind a little scary.”

Her act dropped and she looked to you suddenly with a sharp but quietly curious look. You took the bait and continued.

“I mean—it probably takes takes a questionably sane human to come down here nearly _daily_ and spend time with someone who could easily kill them if the mood struck, wouldn’t it?

“Well, you’re certainly either _daft_ or insane. Haven’t quite decided which.”

“All I’m saying—is that maybe it’s _not_ that you aren’t terrifying, but more that you stumbled upon someone just dumb or crazy enough to enjoy your sociopathic ramblings.”

You felt bold saying it, briefly fearing that you overstepped and let your tongue-and-cheek side out a little strong.

But, to your surprise, she suddenly threw her head back into a fit of laughter. The sound was infectious and you couldn’t help but let your own lips quirk back upward. She took her time regaining her composure, wiping away what might have been an _actual_ stray tear of laugher.

“ _Oh_. _Well,_ At least you seem to possess _some_ semblance of self-awareness lacking in _most_ of your species.”

“Coming from _you_ , I’ll take that as a complement,” you replied with an edge of wry amusement showing through.

“Don’t flatter yourself too much, pet. Just an observation.”

 _There_ it was again. You said nothing, but looked down and avoided her gaze as you felt her analyzing you.

You glanced at your phone and swore quietly at the time. You had spent far too long there.

Again.

You climbed to your feet, stretching the muscles the you hadn’t realized you had been tensing, and gathering your belongings.

“It’s late—I should get going,” you said, trying to dispel whatever effect she was having on you in your sudden urge to stay.

She turned away from you and hummed with a guarded indifference that you had come to recognize, but you hadn’t quite learned how to decipher.

The silence fell between the two of you until the sound of a shrill note on the piano jarred you enough to look up from your gathering of papers and notebooks. She didn’t look your way, but you caught the silhouette of her smile at your surprised jump. She comfortably fell into a melody that sounded vaguely familiar, but you didn’t know enough about classical music to bother a guess.

You thought she might continue to play without as much as a goodbye, as she often did in her attempt to make it clear that she didn’t enjoy your little visits as much as you did.

_But maybe you were flattering yourself._

You needed to be a realist. Especially with her.

And especially with how uneasy your own muddled non-existent feelings where towards her.

You yawned, shaking the thoughts away as you realized just how tired and fatigued your muscles were from the long day of classes, staying up too late with Bill and the Doctor, and slipping away to sneak in some time with _her_ behind their backs.

To your surprise ,as you turned to leave, she chimed out.

“Now, _don’t_ be be roped into some silly adventure do-gooder adventure with the Doctor tomorrow.”

You looked back at her in surprise.

“You’re particularly _boring_ when you’re tired. I can’t have you too tired to listen attentively next time,” the shift in her voice took you off guard. Back to her guarded, colder tone, but with a playful edge.

“I don’t like other people playing with _my toys_.”

She shot you a wink and you quickly turned away to leave while giving a short nod. Your face flushed at the gesture.

 _No_.

You weren’t developing feelings for her.

You _couldn’t_.

That would be ridiculous, and _incredibly_ stupid.

But the memory of the uneasy fluttering in your stomach when she smiled at you tugged at your subconscious, and had to admit you had never really enjoyed hearing the sound of your own name as much as you did falling from her lips.

_Oh Shit._

You _had feelings_ for her.

\---

If she hadn’t yet noticed how you felt towards her, you particularly weren’t eager to let it slip out.  
Sure, you heard an earful of the Doctor’s warnings and the exasperation in his tone every time he found you with her.  
And as he reminded you that she was very, very dangerous, harbored a strong dislike of humans, and could be very manipulative when she wanted to be.

Part of you hoped that you didn’t fall into that category. But the self-preservation instinct in you reminded you that you might.

The thought that maybe she was using you to get to the Doctor sent an ache through your chest.   
You didn’t want to be blindsided—to be naïve enough that you were sure you’d be the exception to her distaste for humanity.  
You needed to be practical—despite the complete impracticality of dropping plans with classmates and friends to visit with the Time Lady.  
You weren’t an exceptionally emotion-driven type.  
But then again, you weren’t usually the crush type either.

So, you played it subtle.   
Or at least _tried_ to.  
Your visits remained fairly regular, and she didn’t appear especially eager to scare you off, and maintained her expected level of pointed jabs, occasionally cruel, but often very funny commentary, and occasional insults that lacked the sentiment behind it to get to you.

Slowly, your visits evolved from story monologues, to listening to her play the piano, discussing books, even turning an old projector into a screen to show TV shows and films either you or her hadn’t seen.

And even her asking you the occasional question about yourself. It wasn’t until feeling quiet attentiveness in her gaze while waiting for your reply that you realized she was serious.

Despite his constant reminders not to fall for her tricks, you had absolutely developed a soft spot for the Time Lady.  
She had a biting wit, a wicked sense of humor, and tales that kept you on the edge of your seat.  
Sure, you weren’t entirely sure if they were all true. (Yet, you had a feeling most of them were, given what you knew about your other Time Lord friend).

Needless to say, you were smitten. You tried not to be obvious about it, though she was incredibly smart, so you didn’t doubt she must have picked up on it partly at the very least.

She seemed to at least like the company and audience enough to not try to trick you into your death. Which for her, seemed like at least a good start.

Much to her dismay and your delight, you could tell she was starting to openly enjoy you returning for visits so often. The way her eyes lit up and her lips curled into a smile instantly when you stepped across the threshold of the vault had you easily mirroring her expression.

By now, you were no longer phased as she swung open the glass of her “cell” and stepped out with a flourish. You responded by lifting your gifts of cheap wine into her line of sight.

You could have almost sworn she almost snorted a laugh as her head falling back in a fit of amusement. Your face warmed at seeming to get a genuine laugh out of her and you offered a cheeky grin in return as she shook her head in mock-exasperation and stepped toward to your usual comfy chair setup with a small table.

You tossed your rucksack down and set down the several containers of boxed wine. You knew Missy would complain about it the whole time, but drink it all anyway.

“Terrible. I don’t even know why I bother giving you recommendations,” she said, falling back onto the old cushioned loveseat.

“Because your last recommendation was the _blood of a fresh virgin sacrifice_.”  
Missy seemed to once more get a kick out of her own joke and crinkled her nose with a teasing smile.  
“—and when you finally did give an actual wine recommendation, every bottle you mentioned was at least a few hundred pounds out of my price range.”

Missy kicked her feet up onto the table with a light scoff, waving her hand in dismissal with a slight shake of her head.  
“You don’t put a price tag on good taste.”  
You shook your head, still half-smiling as you pulled out a couple of clear plastic cups that had her rolling her eyes again and shooting another look of disapproval that had you grinning again.

“You do on my budget.”  
That earned a small huff of a laugh from Missy as she tutted in mock-disappointment at the spread.

“Besides, I don’t think bringing you breakable, sharp glass would be very advisable, given the wines I’ve brought you the past few visits.”  
Missy chuckled at that.  
“Now that’s true. But alas, I’ll overlook that this once, just to show I can be a both fair and firm overlord.” she shot a wink at you, reaching for her pseudo-glass. You did roll your eyes at that.  
“How _very_ gracious,” you deadpanned without missing a beat.

“You’ll have to open that atrocious thing,” Missy nodded towards the wine. You shot her a skeptical look, but leaned over and reached for it anyway.  
“Being an _intergalactic genius_ , I assumed you would know how to open boxed wine by now.”  
Her lips twitched upward at the backhanded compliment.  
“Wine wasn’t made for boxes, dear. It’s _unnatural_ and one of humanity’s greatest atrocities,” She kicked her legs over the other side of the loveseat, reclining with a bored expression.  
“—and why would I ever want to know such things when others do it for you. It’s bad enough that I’m reduced to slumming it with a _plebe_ like you.”

That did strike a bit of a nerve, but you held it back and played along anyway as if it hadn’t.

“If it’s so much below you, then I’ll take myself and my _plebian_ wine back to my flat to slum it alone in peace then,” your tone was light, but you couldn’t help but frown as you abruptly stood, reaching for your bag and the boxes.

Your head snapped up at her sudden grip on your arm. You blinked at the silent speed with which she had risen from the chair and now stood beside you. The glint in her eyes offered a stark reminder of exactly who she was.

“Don’t you dare,” her voice dropped to a low threat that almost sent a shiver down your spine, but instead you offered her a quietly challenging look, meeting the icy heat of her gaze with quiet defiance that said then play nice.

You released your grip on the box and her grasp loosened. You tossed your bag back towards your chair with a sigh.  
“Fine.”

_Then at least don’t act like you’d rather me leave._

The thought remained unsaid, but you hadn’t anticipated the heavy silence that fell between the two of you then. But you had grown painfully aware of her sudden closeness to you. Something akin to regret seemed to shift in her gaze. Your breath nearly caught as she raised a hand and let her fingers softly graze your jaw before, in a rare moment of hesitation on her part, she let her hand fall back to her side.

You knew that despite her half-hearted attempts to insult and belittle you, you saw exactly what she was actually trying to do.

She enjoyed your visiting time every bit as much as you did. Despite her efforts to get under your skin. You occasionally caught the slight look of pride hidden in her gaze when you stood your ground and didn’t flinch at the things she’d say just to elicit a reaction.

After a long pause, she looked back up to you and made a faux cat claw gesture with her hand.  
_“Rrrraaaoooww,_ ” 

you couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculous sound and pantomime. Which, you were quite sure was the idea, as the added coldness dissipated once more. She plopped back onto her sofa with a huff.  
“Now that we can put the claws back, pour me a glass before I change my mind.”  
You shook your head softly, crouching down and opening the spout on the box before pausing and reaching back for your rucksack.  
“Right away, your highness,” you added dryly.

From your bag, you pulled out a small bottle with the dim glinting reflection of foil at the top. Out of the corner of your eye, you caught Missy’s brows raise, but said nothing as you unwrapped the foil and set the small corked bottle on the table.

“Alright, now this is bordering on overkill—what’s the occasion? I see you’ve brought the top shelf gutter wine for me, and you even bothered to bring those bloody red cups that make it feel like an American frat house in here. So, tell me. What’s gotten you so worked up?”

You turned back to her with barely concealed grin,

You hesitated. You shouldn’t be surprised she knew you well by now.

“It’s _supposed_ to be a surprise,” you said and paused, hesitantly meeting her pressing gaze.  
Missy smirked at that.   
“And it’s not my surprise to give away.”

Missy leaned forward, with a teasing smile.  
“ _Ohhh_ , so _the_ _Doctor_! Come on, tell me. Don’t worry, I’ll act _surprised_.”  
Her finger bopped softly on your nose before giving a dramatic look of surprise.  
“See? It’ll be a little secret for _just us girls.”_

You had expected it would end up like this, and you had a very strong suspicion that the Doctor had expected you to tell her before he did. Maybe to get her warmed up to the idea.

“Well….yes, the Doctor spoke with me earlier today, ” you paused, furrowing your brow as a pang of guilt shot through you at the possibility that the Doctor hadn’t planned on you telling her. However, the weight of Missy’s pressing gaze left little room to back out of what you had started, so you spat it out.

“He was open to letting you out for an adventure in the TARDIS…..to see how you’d do. Responding to a distress call, or something.”  
“—he wants me to play _him_?”

You hesitantly look up at her, truly unsure how she would react.

You knew their history was complicated to say the least.  
But as far as specifics went, they were few and far between. Not knowing much about their history to begin with made it difficult for you to predict the reaction of an already unpredictable woman.

But her face lit up as a sly grin fell across her lips, her head falling back as she erupted into a thunderous laugh.  
After a long moment, she regained her composure to lean forward in her seat, propping her chin up on her hand.

“He wants to give me a go at playing him? Hilarious. A bit like playing _Doctor Who_ style _probation_ , is it?”  
“Ah….a bit? I suppose.”  
To your relief she laughed at that, the tenseness in your shoulders easing as she visibly relaxed and her face light up, gears visibly turning in her head at the possibilities.

“Yes. Playing _goody_ -good Doctor shouldn’t be too hard,” she turned back to you, leaning forward again in her seat, as if sharing something in confidence.  
“Besides, I’d love to show him just how easy it is to do his job, just to rub it in his face for a _laugh_ ,” she added with another pondering expression, more thinking out loud than to you. Her eyes snapped back to yours after a moment, sparkling with mischief as she stood and slowly paced past you.

“S’ppose either way that’s better than 70 more years in the vault…”  
You nodded, looking over the back of your chair and smiling softly as she seemed to come to life at the notion of seeing something other than this same room.  
She turned and walked back towards you, hands resting proudly on her hips as she swayed with each step.  
“—And am I to assume he’ll be supervising this little excursion?” slowed to a stop behind your chair.  
“That was one of his conditions.”  
“Supporting expendables and all?”  
“Ah. I…you mean Nardole and Bill?  
“—and _you_.”  
You blinked in surprise, mildly offended.  
“I can come if you like…. calling me an expendable isn’t exactly an assuring start.”

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic, of course you’re coming.”

You nearly jumped at the feeling of her hands suddenly at your shoulders as she stood behind your chair. Her face dropped to hover over your shoulder, close enough to feel her breath against your cheek. You froze, but didn’t move away from her touch.

“Besides. The Doctor gets _his_ companions, I should be allowed _mine_.”

_Did she just…?_

“So, don’t be so tense, pet,” her hands slid down the outside of your arms to rest on either side of you. Her lips moved closer to your ear as her voice lowered.  
“ _Stick close_ , and don’t wander off, and you shouldn’t have too much to worry about,” She finished with a quick peck to the side of your cheek and straightened back up to full height.  
“Now, the _bubbly_ ,” she said, extending her hand expectantly.  
If was anyone else, you might have asked for a please before even moving, but somehow, knowing full well that she wouldn’t even if you had, you found the light order strangely endearing coming from her.

You reached forward and grabbed the mini-champagne, passing it and a glass to her. She gave you a sly wink and draped herself sideways over the arm of your chair as she readied the bottle as you held the glasses.   
The cork shot-out from the mini-champagne with a pop! And you made a noise of complaint, but couldn’t help but laugh as the booze quickly fizzed over and splashed onto you. You held the glass as she poured until it was overflowing, causing more to slosh onto you from the too-full cup.

“Hey—rude,” you grumbled as she purposefully poured even more into the glass and nudged you so its contents splashed onto your shirt and by now had the jeans on your leg nearly soaked.

“That’s what you get for being clumsy,” she clicked her tongue in a mock-patronizing tone.  
You reached to try to grab the bottle when she moved it away and held a finger up.  
“Ah-ah, this is my gift, remember. I didn’t have to share.”  
“But you _didn’t_ share!—you could have had two glasses from that,” you offered indignantly.  
“And yet, _here_ you are, making a mess in _my vault_ , covered in what would have been second glass. So, in a way, I did share didn’t I? See, I’m becoming more giving already.”

You shot her an unamused look that had her smiling slyly at you once more. You made a small sound of annoyance, but otherwise didn’t bother questioning her logic at this point, and poured yourself some of your boxed wine.  
She raised a glass and stuck a pose pausing for dramatic effect.  
“A toast,” she began, stopping to take a cheat sip of her own overflowing glass.  
You found a smile forming on your lips as you raised your own glass.

“To what exactly?”  
“To _freedom_ , bitches.”  
“—well, sort of,” you added quickly with a near snort of a laugh, ignoring the exasperated look she sent you.

You didn’t want her get any wrong ideas about the Doctor’s intentions, but held up your glass anyway.  
“Ugh… _fine_. Then to _sort_ _of_ freedom, bitches!” She revised with as much enthusiasm as you clinked the plastic cups together.

“I’ll drink to that.”


	2. Chapter 2

((Hey, I’m still alive. Wow, this chapter took forever.  I genuinely forgot how much plot setup happens in the first 10 minutes of 10x11. Very dialogue-heavy from the actual episode this time, but I promise for future chapters should have a better flow. Let me know what you think!

Chapter warnings: Nothing huge this time, aside from violence. But I will place warnings for future chapters))

* * *

As you stood huddled behind Missy, flanked on either side by Nardole and Bill, you felt far more apprehensive than you cared to admit.

Despite this, when you caught Bill’s uneasy look in your direction, you gave a small reassuring smile back at her. You moved closer and playfully nudged her with your elbow, causing her worried expression to soften into a small smile.

You could tell your friend was on edge and not keen on the idea of Missy taking the lead for the distress call mission the Doctor drafted up. You felt the thrum of nerves too, but you knew it was important to keep a calm face if there was any chance of showing the others what you had seen in the Time Lady.

It wasn’t even The Time Lady with whom you had something of a confusing relationship with that had you on edge. You had the feeling that she actually  _ was _ wanting to take on the Doctor’s challenge to  _ be him _ for a day, and do it well enough to rub it in his face.

Sure, you didn’t doubt she  _ definitely _ would scare the lot of you just to make you squirm, but the root of your wariness was less the Time Lady and more knowing that you were jumping at the first distress signal the TARDIS picked up. 

Despite knowing the Doctor for months now, you hadn’t quite gotten used to his cavalier approach to life-endangering situations. You had truly only been on a few adventures with him in the TARDIS. This partly had to do with the role you had accidentally adopted with Missy, and partly because you preferred your adventures with little bit more research and more  _ calculated _ risks than jumping in and hoping for the best.

_ “Don’t you want to at least do a little digging before responding to the first distress call you find?” _

You had asked as the Doctor locked in coordinates to the distress signal.

“Well, they’re in  _ distress _ , there’s no time,” he responded brusquely, pulling down a lever beside you as you folded your arms.

“You have a  _ time machine _ . How do we not have time?”

He huffed at you, turning his head to give a deadpan stare in response at the fault in his own logic, but you couldn’t help but shake your head and crack a smile as he waved his hand in dismissal.

“He thinks it’s more  _ fun _ that way, ” Missy teased. To which the Doctor shot an annoyed look in her direction, but didn’t otherwise correct her.

“Figuring out what’s _really_ going on is half the fun. If the Doctor wants to see how I do _playing as him,_ we might as well go with full authenticity. _Complete lack of foresight and all.”_ Missy offered with a sly grin and spun her umbrella with a flourish.

The Doctor had rolled his eyes at her before letting them rest back on you.

“It’ll be  _ fine _ . I promise,” he assured with a quick pat on your shoulder as he passed you.

Yet, now, standing in quiet anticipation as the TARDIS landed, you felt far less sure. 

Maybe you  _ were _ being ridiculous.

The Doctor had done this  _ god knows _ how many times, and it clearly had worked out for him.

_ But you’re not the Doctor. _

You tried to shake yourself off that sudden, stark thought. 

“ _ Showtime _ ,  _ ladies _ ,” Missy announced, breaking you away from your thoughts. She met your gaze for a long beat, a smirk playing on her lips as she adjusted her feathered hat to tilt further forward on her head, and tapped the floor with her umbrella for emphasis.

You almost wanted to say something, but didn’t know what. The moment passed as she turned away and swung the TARDIS door open. Upon her first step out its doors, she struck an exaggerated pose, her hand resting on her hip with confident ease. 

“ _ Hello. I'm Doctor Who _ ,” Missy said, drawing out the name and pausing for dramatic effect. She stepped out of the TARDIS with a small hop.

“ _ And these _ are my plucky assistants, Thing One, The Tolerable One, and the Other One.”

She continued, seemingly addressing no one in particular into an empty control room.

The three of you step out of the Tardis behind Missy. Even you stop yourself from rolling your eyes, but otherwise remained quiet as you reached up and adjusted your, clunky earpiece that fit pressed uncomfortably against your ear.

Nardole sighed behind you and stepped to the side, gesturing to your little group.

“Bill. Nardole. Y/n.”

Nardole said in a flat tone.

“--We picked up your distress call,” she continued, ignoring the bald android and offering an exaggerated wink towards the security camera above as it mechanically adjusted and appeared to zoom in to examine you and your companions.

“—and here we are to help, like _awesome_ _heroes_.”

Missy added, clearly enjoying herself as she swung her umbrella around and gave an extra twirl across the room as she approached the center. 

She must have felt your eyes on her, as her head suddenly whipped back towards you with a smirk and sent another wink in your direction.

“Yeah, we're not, we're not assistants—“ Bill corrected flatly, annoyed and unamused, but knowing that her words would likely have little influence on the Time Lady.

“Okay,  _ right _ , what, so what does he call you? Companions? Pets?  _ Snacks _ ?”

Any retort you might have tried to muster immediately died in your throat as an alarm began to blare around you, the room’s lights flashing from blue an ominous red.

“ _ Oh _ , someone's watching.”

Evidently unphased by the new development, Missy began to sway back and forth to the tempo of the alarm, kicking her heels out with each step to the rhythm.

“Well, that's  _ quite _ a good beat, really, isn't it?”

“—Yeah. Maybe we should be moving on?” Nardole piped in, his wary voice a stark contrast from Missy’s apparent nonchalance. 

“Yeah, and he calls us  _ friends _ ,” Bill cut in defensively, visibly shifting from annoyed to mildly offended.

“ _ Ew _ ,  _ Doctor _ . But think of the  _ age gap _ . “

You  _ knew _ she said it to irritate the Doctor. But that didn’t stop the quiet huff of indignance from slipping past your lips. It stung a bit more than you cared to admit, your heart sinking slightly at the comment.

You folded your arms across your chest and subtly angled yourself away from her in hopes that she didn’t catch a glimpse of your disheartened expression.

Missy set her parasol down on a nearby chair and unpinned her hat.

_ “Stop mucking about and concentrate.” _

__

The Doctor spoke up again through the earpiece. 

_ “Nardole, do something non-irritating. “ _

__

“On it, sir!”

“Time Lords are friends with each other, dear,” Missy continued, ignoring the Doctor and sounding almost bored as she looked at her reflection in a glass panel. She paused at the reflection and adjusted her hair and examined the state of her makeup, before blowing an exaggerated kiss into the air.

“Everything else is cradle-snatching.”

At  _ that _ statement,  _ y _ ou were truly bothered.

“Sounds a bit  _ limiting _ ,” you shot back, an edge subconsciously creeping into your voice. You still avoided looking in her direction and studied the surrounding control room panels and monitors with feigned interest.

“Glad to hear you think  _ so highly  _ of our company,” you added, furrowing your brow..

_ Maybe it was stupid to think she saw you as a friend. _

You only had visited her nearly  _ every day _ for the better part of a year.

You didn’t realize that you hadn’t even made her  _ species _ requirement for friendship.

While attempting to mask the layered emotions connected with that realization hitting you, you barely even registered Nardole and the Doctor’s voices as you attempted to keep your expression mostly blank. 

Part of you knew that she was likely saying it just to get under Bill’s skin. Yet, you couldn’t help but note that she spoke the words with a little  _ too much _ conviction to make you think it was entirely a lie.

“Oh, it's a big one. Ship reads as four hundred miles long.”

You tuned out mentally from the rapid back and forth over the earpiece and quietly moved to sit on the nearby chair, ignoring the weight of Missy’s gaze on you. 

You didn’t bother looking up and reclined into the seat, propping your elbow up on the armrest and supporting your head on your hand. You dimly realized you might have resembled a bored child as you kept your blank expression, your gaze drifted across the room and looking everywhere but at the Time Lady.

“And a hundred miles wide,” Nardole added.

“It's big, even for a colony ship,” the Doctor’s voice sounded through the earpiece

_ “Anything else?” _

Your attention shifted again as Missy looked upward, something suddenly catching her attention. You followed the direction of her gaze and your eyes widened.

“Oh,  _ wow _ .”

“It's heading towards a black hole. “

“ _ No _ ….”

Missy’s voice suddenly sounded pensive, as she stared up at the black hole through through the circular glass window.

Her attention broke away from the black hole and you cursed yourself quietly as you made the mistake of meeting her eyes.

Her words were directed at the Doctor, but her gaze lingered on you. She studied you for another long beat, something unidentifiable flashing in her eyes as her lips twitched downward into a frown.

Whatever silent moment you might have just had passed as the Doctor chimed back in through the earpiece.

_ “No, it isn't!” _

“It  _ was _ ,” Missy corrected, studying the ship’s navigational readings overhead.

“--heading towards a black hole, until somebody noticed. Now they're trying to reverse away from it. Engines are on reverse thrust,  _ see _ ?”

Her tone came off a little less biting than before. You found yourself nodding idly and gazing up at the ominous vortex swirling above you.

“ _ Oh _ . Well, it's succeeding,” Nardole noted.

“Yes...very, very  _ slowly _ . “ Missy added, seeming to almost float towards where you sat with a casual, predatory grace. 

“Explains the distress call, I guess.”

_ “So, a four-hundred mile ship, reversing away from the gravitational pull of a black hole. Are we having fun yet?” _ The Doctor asked.

Missy hummed in a pleased sound of agreement, and you nearly jumped at her voice being suddenly close to your ear, teasing in a light voice.

“ _ See _ ? We’re having  _ fun _ . You can stop pouting now, pet.”

You blinked in surprise, tilting your head back and opening your mouth to retort, but a sudden crackle drew your attention back to the wall in front of you. A large screen buzzed to life and the face of a man appeared on the monitor, his voice heavily distorted by static.

_ “Hello? Who's there? Hello? Please report status. “ _

Missy had already darted half-way across the room towards the screen. You stood, your curiosity getting better of you.

“Oh,  _ hello _ ,” Missy chimed, “What _ have we got here?” _

She studied the man on the screen, casually resting an elbow atop what you assumed to be a pilot chair.

“You're probably handsome, aren't you? Well, congratulations on your relative symmetry. “

You couldn’t help the scoffed laugh that emitted from you at the comment, earning a sidelong look from Bill.

_ “Who are you?”  _ the man on the screen said, almost accusatory, scrunching his face in confusion.

“Well, I am that  _ mysterious _ adventurer in all of time and space, known only as  _ Doctor Who _ ,” she said with one arm raised in a dramatic gesture and gusto that wouldn’t have surprised you if she had rehearsed.

You had moved beside her to get a better look at the screen and blinked in surprise as she suddenly wrapped an arm around you and gripped your shoulders with a squeeze. “And these are my disposables, Exposition, Sidekick, and Comic Relief. “

“We're not  _ functions _ ,” Nardole said with a grimace.

“Darling, those were  _ genders _ . “

  
  


_ “--Please, stay exactly where you are for your own safety,” _ the man on the screen continued, sounding unamused by Missy’s explanation..

“He  _ likes _ me. So exciting,“ she looked to you with a conspiring look.

_ “I'm coming through,”  _ man on the screen said before the feed abruptly cut-out. 

You looked towards Nardole and Bill in alarm, but Missy seemed not at all phased by the man’s brusque announcement.

“ _ Hurry, my stallion _ . And if I'm in the shower, just bring me some beans on toast. That's roughly human flirting, isn't it?”

Missy offered you another wink, and you slowly shook your head in skepticism. Her hand briefly brushed across your shoulder as she stepped away. Bill’s face scrunched in confusion.

“So, why do you keep calling yourself Doctor Who?”

Missy tilted her head, hand resting at her hip as she narrowed her eyes at Bill’s question.

“ _ Because _ I'm pretending to  _ be him _ . Because that's the whole point of this  _ ridiculous exercise. _ ”

She spoke slowly, the scottish enunciations in her voice stronger with each word. 

_ “It's not an exercise, it's a test.”  _ The Doctor said, jumped back in, his voice distorted by a  _ crunch _ heard on the other side of the line.

“Are you  _ eating _ ?”

Again, the amplified crinkle of plastic through the earpiece.

“ _ No _ . “

The Doctor countered unconvincingly like a child caught in a lie.

“Yeah, well, don't  _ test me _ eating  _ crips _ !” Missy snapped in irritation at the notion.

You wandered over by Nardole to peer at the screen of the computer he was typing away at with a stern expression.

You couldn’t make sense of what any of it meant, all unintelligible numbers and alien code you didn’t understand, but it still felt more engaging than the listless banter that already was giving you a headache.

“—Yeah, but he's called the Doctor, so….” Bill continued, revisiting Missy’s prior statement. Missy didn’t miss a beat,

“--He says, I'm the Doctor, and they say, _Doctor who_? See, I'm cutting to the chase, baby. I'm _streamlining_. I'm saving us _actual_ _minutes_ ,” she added, leaning into each movement and snapping her fingers at each word for emphasis.

“Yeah, okay, whatever,” Bill scoffed, turning away from her.

“—Also it's his real name.”

“It's  _ what _ ?” Bill said, abruptly spinning back to face the Time Lady. You actually did roll your eyes that time at Missy toying with Bill.

Missy slid into the seat beside her, ignoring Bill’s question.

_ “Slow today, Missy,”  _ the Doctor commented.

“All those screens have been angled to a single viewpoint. But not originally, they've all been moved. “

_ “Which means? “ _

“Giant ship, single pilot, but not designed that way. Something's happened to the others.”

“ _ Yes. And now It's time for you to figure out what. _ “

With an electronic whirr, the group’s attention shifted to the CCTV cameras moving abruptly and settling onto them.

“Uh oh...Someone else has noticed us.”

Nardole’s voice remained low, but he rose to his feet in alarm, glancing around with caution.

“Look’s like Big Brother’s not happy…” you attempted in a weak joke, eyeing the camera warily.

“Sorry, what do you mean, it's his  _ real _ name? Nobody knows the Doctor's real name.

“ _ I _ do, because I grew up with him, and his real name is _ Doctor Who. _ ”

_ “-Bill, she's just trying to wind you up.” _

“--Chose it himself, you know, trying to sound  _ mysterious _ .”

“And then he dropped the Who when he realised it was a tiny bit on the nose.”

“--and  _ Mistress _ isn’t?” you countered. Missy raised a brow, regarding you and your sudden cheekiness with mild amusement.

“Well, _yes_ it’s my name, but I go by _Missy_ now so it’s _not_ the same, is it? It’s called subtlety. ”

_ “Missy, we both know subtlety isn’t in your vocabulary. Now stop teasing them and focus.” _

“Is she serious, though, Doctor? Is your real name Doctor Who?” Bill pressed and you half-groaned, hoping they would just drop it and figure out exactly who or what was coming.

As if on cue, you heard the soft  _ ding _ of an elevator and looked up as a set of mechanical doors slid open at the far end of the room. You took a harsh intake of air as a bald man with blue skin emerged through the doors, decidedly  _ not _ friendly, as he raised a gun and pointed it immediately in the direction of your group.

“Oh, you're blue _! _ Nice. I should go back to blue.  _ Ow _ !” Nardole began in a far-too cheery voice, causing you to jab your elbow harshly into his side to possibly improve your chances of  _ not _ being shot.

“And  _ armed… _ ” you added under your breath, careful not to make any sudden movements as he visually swept the room and rounded the control panel. You now noticed his erratic, jerky movements as he circled back again, training the gun at each of you. 

_ “ _ Stay where you are!” he ordered. There was a desperate, wild look in his eyes. 

You froze, eyeing the man cautiously before stealing a glance at Missy. She appeared calm, but her expression was decidedly stoic. 

_ “Stay calm. He's very frightened,”  _ the Doctor warned, his voice mostly even, but betraying his alarm at the situation.

“ _ Deary me _ , I thought you were handsome, and now you've gone all cross and you're  _ pointing a gun at me _ ,” Missy’s voice dropped from teasing to low and threatening.

“Is this the emotion you humans call  _ spanking _ ?”

If you weren’t fearing for your friends and your own safety, you might have blushed at the way Missy’s eyes lingered on you at the word  _ ‘spanking’ _ . 

But the moment was unfortunately undercut by the unhinged alien man pointing a gun at you.

“Are there only four of you? Are any of you  _ human _ ?” the man raised his voice at the word, an an anger and fear in his voice that made your stomach churn.

You sucked in a sharp intake of air as he stepped forward, jamming his gun in front of Nardole’s face. Nardole immediately held his hands up and started shaking his head. 

You cast a worried glance at Bill, who met your eyes with fear that you had no doubt was mirrored in your own.

Dragging your attention back to the man, you now noticed the sweat beading across the man’s brow and the slight tremor in the grip on his weapon. Behind his efforts to appear in control, you began to suspect that something happened here that had left him utterly _shaken_. 

“What has happened to this ship and how long have you been here alone? You're looking very  _ sickly _ ,“ Missy pressed.

“Two days,” he replied before turning towards Missy in an accusing tone.

“Are you human?”

“Oh,  _ don't be a bitch _ .”

The man grimaced.

“How did you get on board? Is that your capsule?”

“Yep,” Missy replied without hesitation, pointing her thumb over her shoulder at the blue box.

_ “No.”  _ the Doctor countered.

The man shifted away and up to one of the display panels. You realize that he’s staring at the illuminated numbers above another set of metal doors.

“There,  _ look _ !” the man pointed across the room, rushing towards a set of display panels. 

You knew none of you were out of the woods yet, but you couldn’t help but release a breath you hadn’t realized you had been holding at the new distance between you. 

Now that he had taken his attention elsewhere, your eyes urgently surveyed the room. You needed to find something to distract him for at least long enough to knock his gun away to buy time.

“Three lifts. They're coming,” the blue man spoke again, his voice laced with panic.

He appeared to be  _ right _ .

One hovered at level 0718, and the other two on 0930.

“ _ Who’s _ coming?” you ask.

“Super-fast inertia lifts,” Missy noted, nodding towards the display.

“Well, what's inside? What's coming up here?”

“ _ Things _ . I don't even know where they came from,” the man shook his head in dismay, fidgeting and becoming more visibly agitated as the numbers dropped with each second.

“One of you  _ must be human. _ They only come up if they detect human life signs.”

_ Floor 350 _

__

“What for?” Bill asked.

“They take them away,” the man replied.

“Away to  _ where _ …?” you pressed, eyeing the man with skepticism.

_ “I'll be right with you.” _

The Doctor announced abruptly, doing little to ease the growing dread in your stomach.

“Which of you is  _ human _ ?” the man shouted again, causing you to jump at the sudden intensity of volume and emotion in his voice. Training his weapon on each of you with an edge of desperation in his movements. you didn’t dare make a sudden move.

The doors of the TARDIS abruptly swung open, the movement making the blue man pivot and retrain his weapon towards the new arrival. You watched as the Doctor emerged, his arms raised and movements slow, but his keen gaze acutely trained on the danger in front of him.

You froze at the unexpected voice that spoke up.

“ _ Me _ . Me, me. I'm human,” Bill began, and your eyes snapped towards her in alarm. Immediately she locked eyes with you for a brief moment with a loaded look, making the sounds of protest die in your throat and fade into a mortified silence.

“I'm the only one. Just, _just_ _me_ ,” Bill continued, her voice firm and assertive despite the fear evident in her eyes.

You bite your tongue. It was all you could do to stop yourself from shouting at her  _ to stop  _ talking and let the Doctor convince the man his systems must have made a mistake. Even that wasn’t enough to stop yourself from the mounting desire to tackle the man while he was distracted. Just to do  _ something _ to stop this stranger from pointing a gun at your friend.

The only thing that muted the impulse was a sudden sharp sensation at your wrist. A sensation like a vice grip of needle points pressed against the flesh of your forearm and you didn’t need to look back to realize just who was responsible.

Missy stood silently beside you, her movement obscured from the stranger’s view, and her grip stung as she dug her nails down with near bruising insistence. A silent warning to  _ not _ do anything impulsive.

It was  _ almost _ sweet, coming from her. 

But only when considering how little regard you knew she held for human life. 

You didn’t doubt your arm would be adored little half-moon bruises when she let go. Grimly, you realized you’d be satisfied with simply living long enough to even see them form, given your current predicament.

The Doctor froze at Bill’s proclamation,  _ fear _ now morphing his shocked expression to one of horror. He nearly leapt forward in desperation, pleading with the blue man.

“ _ Please _ stop this. Stop right there,  _ now _ .”

“ _ I'm sorry _ . I'm so sorry, but you're the reason that they're coming. “

The man raised his weapon again.

“Put it down. Put that down now,” the Doctor repeated, his voice calm despite his fearful expression. The man shook his head, holding the gun steady with resolution.

“They won't come if _ she's dead.” _

_ Floor 45 _

__

“You don't need to do this,” the Doctor pleaded, slowly moving closer with his hands raised to show himself as unarmed.

“I can get her off this ship. I can shield her life signs,” the Doctor continued his attempt at persuasion.

“You know what, Doctor? I said this was a bad idea,” Bill said quietly, tearing her eyes from the man with the gun and addressing the Doctor directly.

_ Floor 26 _

__

“ _ Please _ ,  _ listen _ to me. Look at me. Go on,  _ look _ at me. That's good. That's very, very good. Now, do you see this mad woman sitting in this chair? Her name isn't Doctor Who.  _ My name  _ is Doctor Who.”

“—It's not, is it?” Nardole muttered and you fought the urge to slap the friendly android in that particular moment.

The Doctor nearly stood within reaching distance of the man. You suddenly recognized something in this careful posturing that gave you a spark of hope for the situation.

You realized the Doctor aimed to disarm him. Now, he just needed to buy a couple more seconds.

Your eyes flicker back to the number display as the lift seemed to pause between floors 8 and 7.

_ Floor 7 _

“— _ I like it _ . You don't know it yet, but in a short time, you will trust me with your life. And when I save you and everyone on your ship, one day you will look back, and wonder who I was and why I did--”

Both you and Doctor knew he was rambling to buy time, but the sound of the lift’s  _ ding _ at arrival caused the blue man to suddenly flinch. 

You heard the gun discharge before registering what had happened, and your stomach dropped in horror.

“—Bill!”

“—You  _ fucking bastard.” _


End file.
